Watch movement



J. G. H. LAVIOLETTE 3,121,990

WATCH MOVEMENT Feb. 25,1964

2 Sheets-Sheet' 2 Filed May 19, 1961 United States Patent 3,121,990 WATCH MOVEMENT Jean Georges Henri Laviolette, Besancon, France, assiguor to Lip Societe Anonyme dHorlogerie, Besancon, France Filed May 19, 1961, Ser. No. 111,318 Claims priority, application France Oct. 5, 1960 12 Claims. (Cl. 58-59) It is the essential object of this invention to provide an improved watch movement.

Nowadays, the clock-making industry produces watches of particularly good quality from the dual point of view of chronometrical operation and appearance. Besides these watches, cheap articles are also marketed which offer no serious guarantee as far as their operation is concerned.

Although high-quality watches are advantageous in that they are extremely reliable from the technical point of view, they are burdened on the other hand by a very high cost whereby their diffusion is considerably limited on the market. The abnormal levels attained by this cost is due to the methods of manufacturing and assembling the component elements of the watch; these methods are frequently very obsolete although from a purely technical standpoint they are in most instances perfectly valuable, but actually they have never been elaborated scientifically so that their economical aspects are very far from satisfactory.

It may also be noted that the watch-making industry has hitherto been concerned chiefly with the assembly of watch elements according to the conventional methods which are carried out in suitable workshops, but watch makers did not actually show much concern for the problems with which watch repairers are constantly confronted, that is, the disassembling and reassembling of these elements, the replacements of worn or broken parts, the watch adjustment, so that repairs constitute for the time being a sequence of difiicult operations involving a considerable loss of time.

It is clear that under these conditions the production cost of the articles cannot be lowered while preserving a reliable chronometrical operation, and the maintenance and repair steps cannot be facilitated, unless the whole problem of Watch manufacture and assembly is tackled in a completely different manner.

The method of disposing the component elements of watches is advantageous in that it complies with the requirements of modern economy by reducing costs both in the manufacture and maintenance of watches, while assuring a highly reliable quality and chronometrical correctness.

This method consists in mounting the watch elements proper, that is, the mainspring barrel, gearing, escape wheel, etc. between a lower plate and an upper plate and by securing at least partially these elements thereon in a readily detachable manner, the escapement mechanism members, escapement lever, regulator, balance wheel, etc. being mounted on a separate support secured on the lower plate and adjustable in position so that the degree of engagement of the escapement lever pallets in the teeth of the escape wheel can be adjusted by simply displacing this support.

From the foregoing it will be readily understood that all the delicate functions of a watch, such as the escapement mechanism and hairspring adjustments are greatly facilitated and that they can be corrected without necessitating any disassembling step. Thus, it is possible to clean as thoroughly as possible the different sections of a watch, assemble these sections and, if desired, make any corrections therein, if required, without removing any part,

3,121,990 Patented Feb. 25, 1964 therefore without altering the cleanliness of the component elements of the watch.

According to a further feature of this invention parts obtained by punching, and shaped if necessary by bending, are used exclusively at least for some of the component elements of the plate such as blades, bridges, etc. as well as for the regulator and the barrel-retaining pawl.

It will be seen that the parts obtained by punching and bending afford a particularly economical manufacture since they make it possible to dispense with most machining steps, welding operations, etc. so that the use of skilled hands is avoided.

On the other hand, certain delicate operations such as drilling, tapping, etc. are reduced to a minimum and even eliminated to a substantial extent from the watch components so as to be practically limited to turned parts, that is, parts which in any case must be mounted on turret lathes, screw-cutting or other machines capable of performing a mechanical tapping operation. As a consequence, notably in case of breakage of one or more screw threads, the tapped member alone is discarded, without having to throw away the whole main plate as required with hitherto practised methods.

In its broader aspects this invention leads indisputably to a rationalization of the watch-making industry to the benefit of both the manufacturer and the watch-repairer.

A watch movement constructed according to the method disclosed hereinabove comprises on the one hand the watch movement components proper, i.e. as the main spring barrel, gearing, escape wheel, etc., which are mounted directly between a lower and an upper plate, and on the other hand the escapement mechanism components i.e. the escapement lever, balance wheel, regulator, etc., which are carried by a separate support adjustably secured on said lower plate.

Finally, this invention is concerned with watches or the like equipped with this improved movement.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention resides in the novel arrangement and combination of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view showing a watch movement constructed according to the teachings of this invention, as seen from the side opposite to the dial.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary section taken upon the line IIII of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view from above showing the regulator in the position occupied thereby when mounted on the watch.

FIGURE 4 is a side elevational view of the regulator.

FIGURE 5 shows the plate element carrying the above and in fragmentary section respectively, it will be seen that the watch structure comprises essentially a lower plate 1. and an upper plate 2 supported on said lower plate, said plates carrying among other elements the watch components proper, that is, the mainspring barrel 3 rotatably mounted about its arbor 4 and the wheels of the gearing. Only the escape wheel 5 is shown in the drawings; the pivots (or according to cases the counterpivots) carrying the arbors of the second wheel and of the third wheel and the arbor of the escapement wheel 5 are denoted by the reference numerals 6, 7 and 8 respectively.

Mounted onthe lower plate 1 and contacting the latter is a separate support 9 secured on this plate and carrying the component elements of the escapement mechanism: the escapement lever (of which only the pallets 10, 10' and the upper pivot 11 are visible in FIG- URE 1) and the balance wheel 12. Two intermediate bridge members 13, 14 are supported on the aforesaid independent support 9 spaced therefrom. Said bridge members 13, 14 carry one of the oscillation pivots of the escapement lever and balance wheel, respectively. The other oscillation pivot of said escapement lever and of said balance wheel is carried by the support 9. This support 9 is mounted on the lower plate 1 in a manner permitting the adjustment of its position in relation thereto. To this end, the holes through which extend the screws 15a, 15b are simply formed with a diameter somewhat greater than the diameter of the screws themselves. It will be readily understood that by properly selecting the position of the support 9 on the lower plate 1 it will be possible to adjust at will the degree of engagement of the pallets 10 and 10 of the escapement lever in the teeth of the escape wheel 5. Of course, elongated holes may be substituted for the larger circular holes in the support 9 for the passage of the fixation screws 15a, 15b; besides, some guide means, for example in the form of a lug rigid with the support and engaging a groove formed in the plate, or vice-versa, may be provided. The fact of mounting the unit formed by the escapement lever and the balance wheel on a separate support is characterized by the further advantage of permitting the adjustment of the different functions of the hairspring, for example in a special workshop; the accessibility of the different parts of the delicate subassembly constituting the balance wheel and hairspring unit is thus greatly improved. After having carried out the necessary adjustments, the support is delivered to the assembly workshops where it is mounted on the watch structure. Due to this possibility of adjusting the engagement of the escapement lever pallets in the teeth intervals of the escape wheel, the degree of precision of the escapement lever proper may be reduced somewhat so that considerably broader tolerances may be used in its manufacture. As a result, manufacturing costs are reduced to a substantial extent. Moreover, with this adjustment it is possible to correct the oscillation amplitude without disassembling the watch.

To secure the various components constituting the watch structure and more particularly to support the upperplate 2 on the lower plate 1, as well as of the bridge members'lii and 14 on the support 9, screws 16a, 16b, 17a, 17b and 18 having a hexagonal head, like the screws 15a, 15b, are used. Said screw may pass through hollow posts or like members disposed between said upper and lower plates or between said bridge members and said support, as known per se. These screws are advantageous in that mechanical means can be used for tightening them and they constitute a convenient substitute for the conventional milled-head and slotted-head screws normally used in the Watch-making industry, which are very difficult to fit due to their reduced dimensions. Of course, screws having a head of any other suitable shape, for' example a square head, may be used if desired without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

To facilitate the assembling and disassembling of the watch component elements, these elements are mounted by means of resiliently deformable members provided with adequate locking means and adapted to be fitted and removed by being simply snapped on and oii. FIGURE 2 illustrates by way of example a typical resiliently deformable member of this type which consists of a blade 19 of resilient material such as steel sheet, and provided with a keyhole slot 20. This blade 19 comprises in addition a bent lug 22 constituting a locking element adapted to engage a notch or hole 23 formed in the upper plate 2. The barrel arbor 4 has a groove 24 formed in its upper portion. A pair of reference pins 25, 26 rigid with the upper plate and formed with registering slots engageable by the edges the blade 19 are provided for locking the barrel arbor against vertical motion. To fit the blade 19, its edges are simply forced into the grooves of pins 25, 26 while engaging its keyhole slot 20 over the projecting end of the barrel arbor, whereafter the blade is moved until the smaller portion 21 of the keyhole slot 20 engages the groove 24 and the bent lug 22 engages the hole or notch 23 in plate 2. It will be seen that the barrel is thus resiliently secured on the upper plate. To remove the mainspring barrel, the operator simply releases the bent lug 22 from hole 23 by using a suitable tool, for example a screwdriver, and then causes the blade 19 to slide bodily until the notch 21 is released from the arbor groove 24. Thus, the arbor 4 can be removed and the barrel extracted from the plates 1 and 2 by sliding sidewise. When re-assembling the parts, the reverse procedure is adhered to. It is evident that this faciilty of assembling and disassembling the mainspring barrel is highly advantageous in that the mainspring itself can be replaced without difliculty in case it were broken or had become useless for any reason. Of course, the resilient member 19 may be given a shape other than that illustrated; similarly, the locking means consisting in this example of an eye formed with an extension engageable in a groove could be replaced by any other device, for example a bayonet joint type device; finally, the bent lug for locking the resilient member itself may be replaced by a stud, pin or the like co-acting with a suitable shaped hole or cavity formed in the plate 2 or in a piston solid with this plate.

There is shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 a regulator obtained by punching or stamping a steel sheet or any other suitable material, and then shaping the resulting blank 2 by bending or otherwise. This regulator comprises a body 27 of annular configuration, formed with an aperture 28 adapted to impart a sufficient elasticity thereto, and an arm 29 formed at its outer end with a lug 30 so cut as to provide a slot 31 adapted to receive one end of the balance hairspring. After stamping or punching the regulator, the lug 30 is bent to about in relation to the plane of arm 29. Preferably, the regulator is cut from a material of sufficient thinness and flexibility so that said lug may be altered in shape and directed as desired by simply twisting it for reducing if necessary, the play of the hairspring in the slot 31. Thus, it is possible to form a sufficiently wide slot without giving an abnormally large play to this hairspring.

For securing the counter-pivots located at the ends of the arbors of the rotary or oscillating members such as the wheels of the gearing, the escape wheel, the escapement lever itself and possibly the balance wheel, resiliently deformable auxiliary plates detachably secured on the lower plate 1, the upper plate 2 or the intermediate bridge member 14 are used. FIGURES 5 and 6 illustrate an auxiliary plate 32 of this type which is also shown in FIGURE 1. This auxiliary plate 32 is provided with locking means whereby it can be secured on or removed from the main plate by a simple snap-on or snapoff operation.

The auxiliary plate 32 comprises two arms 33, 34, carrying at their ends the counter-pivots 7, 8, secured through any suitable means, for example, by crimping. A keyhole 35 engageable in the groove 38.0f a stud or pin 37 solid with the upper plate 2 is provided for looking the auxiliaryplate and therefore the counter-pivots on the upper plate of the watch movement. This auxiliary plate 32; is also provided with an intermediate arm 39 having a bent end portion 40 engageable in a hole,

cavity or notch 41 formed in the upper plate 2 so as to hold this auxiliary plate against motion when it is positioned on the upper plate. Of course, an auxiliary plate having a greater number of arms may be provided, if desired, each arm carrying a counter-pivot unless a plurality of counter-pivots are mounted on a same arm. The locking means could also consist of a bayonet point type device and a locking stud or pin may be substituted for the bent end portion of the auxiliary arm. The auxiliary plate 30 is fitted and removed exactly like the blade 19 provided for mounting the mainspring barrel on the upper plate.

FIGURE 7 illustrates the barrel retaining member consisting of a pawl 42 punched or stamped from sheet metal stock or any other suitable material. This pawl co-acts with the teeth of a ratchet 43 rigid with the barrel and is mounted for both sliding and pivoting movement in a recess or cavity 44 formed in the lower plate 1. This pawl carries a guiding lug or projection 45 preferably of substantially circular or part-circular configuration in section, which engages an elongated notch 46 formed in the recess 44, and a positioning cam or heel, preferably of curved shape, adapted to engage the teeth of ratchet 43. The clockwork positioning cam comprises two arms 47, 48 extending on either side of the projection or lug 45. The arm 48 has an extension 49 constituting the release element of the pawl. The arms 47, 48 have such shape and dimensions that when the ratchet wheel revolves in the direction shown by the arrow P, which corresponds to the winding of the mainspring, the ends 47', 48' of these arms 47, 48 engage alternately the ratchet teeth and are pushed back by these teeth, so that the pawl oscillates about the lug 45 and is carried along at the same time to the left, FIGURE 7, until it occupies the position shown in thick lines. This oscillation is permitted in this extreme position by the free space 50 left at one end of recess 44 so that the arm 47 can move freely. When the ratchet revolves in the direction opposite to that shown by the arrow F, only the end 47' of arm 47 engages and remains engaged with the ratchet teeth; then the pawl is pushed toward the opposite end of the recess and stopped in the position shown in chain-dotted lines, the arm 48 bearing against a locking face 51.

The length of extension 49 is such that it projects outside the locking face 51 so that when it is desired to expand the mainspring, for example if the watch is to be repaired, the operator has simply to lift the extension 49 with the tip of a screw driver or with any other suitable tool or instrument.

Of course, a completely different form of embodiment of the locking face 51 may be contemplated, if desired, or a stud or pin may be substituted therefor. Similarly, the lug or projection 45 illustrated may be replaced if desired with a pawl provided at its base with an elongated aperture or a groove co-acting with a pin or like guide member.rigid with the lower plate 1. These changes would not constitute departures from the scope of the invention.

Of course, other modifications and variations may be brought to the typical form of embodiment shown and described herein, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A watch movement comprising a lower plate, an upper plate spacedly supported on said lower plate, an escape wheel having an arbor pivotally mounted between pivots secured on said lower and upper plates and provided with teeth, a support mounted on said lower plate and contacting the latter, the position of said support being selectable relative to said lower plate, an intermediate bridge member spacedly supported on said support, a balance wheel provided with a hair-spring and having an arbor pivotally mounted between pivots secured on said support and said intermediate bridge member, a further intermediate bridge member also spacedly supported on said support, an escapement lever having an arbor pivotally mounted between pivots secured on said support and said further intermediate bridge member, said escapement lever having two pallets engaging the teeth of said escape wheel, whereby the degree of engagement of said pallets in said teeth may be adjusted by selecting the position of said support.

2. Watch movement according to claim 1, wherein said support is secured on said lower plate by means of screws and wherein orifices are formed in said support which are of a diameter considerably larger than the diameter of the threaded portions of said screws so as to provide a certain play before the screws are tightened for adjustment purposes.

3. Watch movement according to claim 2, wherein said upper plate is provided with pins and holes, and wherein at least some of said pivots are provided with counter-pivots carried by an auxiliary plate made from resiliently deformable material, said auxiliary plate having a keyhole engaging one of said pins and a bent lug engageable in one of said holes.

4. Watch movement according to claim 3, further comprising a main spring and a main-spring barrel therefor, the latter being provided with a ratchet wheel having radially extending teeth and with a pawl engaging said teeth of the ratchet wheel, said pawl being adapted to slide and pivot in a recess formed in said lower plate.

5. Watch movement according to claim 4, wherein said pawl comprises a rounded guide lug engaging a cavity formed in said recess and solid with a positioning cam of curved shape which engages the teeth of said ratchet wheel.

6. Watch movement according to claim 5, wherein said guide lug is of accurate configuration in section with a view to permit a pivoting movement of said pawl.

7. Watch movement according to claim 5, wherein said positioning cam comprises two arms extending on both sides of said guide lug, the end of one of said arms engaging said teeth of the ratchet wheel so that said pawl is carried along toward one of the ends of said recess in the lower plate, according to the direction of rotation of said ratchet wheel.

8. Watch movement according to claim 7, wherein said recess extends on both sides of said cavity and comprises at one end an enlarged portion permitting free oscillation of said pawl when the latter has moved to said one end of the recess, the latter being formed at its other end with a cam face adapted to lock said pawl when the latter has moved to said other end of the recess.

9. Watch movement according to claim 8, wherein the contour of said cam face is such that when said ratchet wheel revolves in the direction corresponding to the windmg of said mainspring barrel said arms engage said teeth of the ratchet wheel and are alternately pushed back thereby, so that said pawl is caused to perform a pivotal movement on said guide lug and at the same time a movement of translation in said recess toward said one end thereof, and that when said ratchet wheel revolves in the opposite direction only one of said arms engages and re mains in engagement with said teeth of the ratchet wheel, whereby said pawl is caused to perform a movement of translation in the opposite direction in said recess until it contacts said cam face.

10. Watch movement according to claim 9, wherein said pawl is formed with a heel at one end, which constitutes an extension of one of said arms and may be acted upon to permit the expansion of said mainspring.

11. Watch movement according to claim 10, wherein said heel is longer than said cam face whereby it projects therefrom when said pawl is in its locking position.

12. Watch movement according to claim 11, wherein said pawl is formed by a simple stamping operation from sheet metal stock.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Russel Nov. 15, 1887 Abbott July 15, 1890 Krahenbuhl Aug. 29, 1899 Ohlson July 21, 1914 Porter Nov. 2, 1915 Corthell Apr. 4, 1916 De Long July 25, 1916 Lewis Oct. 29, 1918 Braunschweig Apr. 27, 1920 8 Coats et a1 Feb. 8, 1921 Benel Feb. 8, 1927 Large et a1 Dec. 16, 1930 Neureuther -2 May 24, 1932 Knobel July 11, 1.935 Better Mar. 2, 1937 Colomb Aug. 26, 1941 Meyer Sept. 26, 1950 Fengler Oct. 10, 1950 Burghofi Feb. 5, 1952 Bamat Aug. 11, 1959 

1. A WATCH MOVEMENT COMPRISING A LOWER PLATE, AN UPPER PLATE SPACEDLY SUPPORTED ON SAID LOWER PLATE, AN ESCAPE WHEEL HAVING AN ARBOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTED BETWEEN PIVOTS SECURED ON SAID LOWER AND UPPER PLATES AND PROVIDED WITH TEETH, A SUPPORT MOUNTED ON SAID LOWER PLATE AND CONTACTING THE LATTER, THE POSITION OF SAID SUPPORT BEING SELECTABLE RELATIVE TO SAID LOWER PLATE, AN INTERMEDIATE BRIDGE MEMBER SPACEDLY SUPPORTED ON SAID SUPPORT, A BALANCE WHEEL PROVIDED WITH A HAIR-SPRING AND HAVING AN ARBOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTED BETWEEN PIVOTS SECURED ON SAID SUPPORT AND SAID INTERMEDIATE BRIDGE MEMBER, A FURTHER INTERMEDIATE BRIDGE MEMBER ALSO SPACEDLY SUPPORTED ON SAID SUPPORT, AN ESCAPEMENT LEVER HAVING AN ARBOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTED BETWEEN PIVOTS SECURED ON SAID SUPPORT AND 